Any alpaca "farmers" out there?

Kind of out of left field I am noticing that alpacas are no longer so outrageously priced and I have the land (pasture) to consider it. Maybe now that the craze to sell pregnant mares for over $20,000 is gone the truth is that is not worth it as a real fiber/fleece harvesting and or breeding operation? For the most part the local people I am able to talk to are more than willing to sell you the animals at very reasonable prices (as low as a few hundred dollars) but are short on details as to the real economics of the operation.

I am wondering if someone here in the asylum has tried making it work and can share their experience here or thru PM's. Thanks.

we went to pagosa springs co and went on a alpaca farm tour, they shared a wealth of knowledge and they said they had the greatest concentration of alpaca farms.might check that area out for more info...............steve

I have no real numbers, which is what you are asking for, BUT I see a few Alpaca farms around here and they are all the "hobby" farm type. I do know there is a tax incentive for raising livestock. My assumption (yes, I may be an ass because of this) is that these owners want the tax break for ranching, but don't want to mess with big animals like cattle or horses. My thinking is that the couple decides that Alpacas are reasonably sized animals to have around, so they can be handled easier.

For numbers, look up what property tax rate is for your county for ranch land and see how many animals are needed to qualify. I believe ours is 5 animals and you need more than 2 acres. Chickens fall into a different category. Anyone can have them around here. Also look into how much Alpacas eat and how much food costs. Add in some veterinary expenses (rabies shots at least) and the cost to house them (pole shed, some heat in the winter) and see if there is any savings from the tax rate you pay now. As for selling the wool, I have no idea what going rate is, but I know that knitting is super trendy right now (my wife and her friends do it) so it probably is at it's peak (for financial planning purposes, don't count on that rate every year).

We have more horse farms than you can shake a stick at. Why people love horses so much is beyond me, but to each their own.

There is a big Alpaca ranch up near Angel Fire NM where he has hundreds of them. I think he ranches them for their wool which is supposed to be superior to sheep's wool and far more lucrative to sell. He has a lot of acreage and animals and a very nice house. So I will bet he is successful at it. Might google him as he is in the Mora NM area.

I have worked with Alpacas quite a bit and here are a few things I have learned.

Being native to the South American highlands they are not accustomed to dealing with the intestinal parasites that are very prevalent in many parts of the U.S. (the worst place for parasites is the Southeastern U.S.). It is very important to have a parasite control plan in place from the beginning when starting to raise Camelids, as a severe infestation can cause profound anemia and even death. ( I have seen several cases of intestinal parasites that required blood transfusions)

There are exceptions but in my experience they are not terribly hardy animals, and when the become ill it can be quite serious very quickly.

Point taken but that would be to easy...... As an example. When was the last time that you heard , he/she is a "dairy rancher"?

The term "dairy farmer" is applied to those engaged primarily in (livestock) milk production. I agree that the term rancher usually applies to those who raise grazing livestock but farmer works too. Or maybe it is that I have done all of the farming stuff since childhood (including livestock) and it never occurred to me that I am anything but a farmer. In my world us small business types are farmers, the JR Ewing's of the world are ranchers.

I have never played the zynga game "farmville" but I am pretty sure you can buy fake livestock there and I get the feeling it would not have been as successful had they called it "ranchville".